Judy Pfaff review

Judy Pfaff’s installation “Wild Rose” (working title) at the new Massry Art Gallery surrounds visitors with intensity and raw energy. Pfaff, a virtuoso at creating installations, evokes the power and beauty of nature and of the built environment. In this piece, Pfaff uses organic and manufactured material to give a sense of the seasons. Pastel petals, an uprooted tree, puffy clouds, stormy skies and rain all swirl in one great riotous torrent. The installation exemplifies what art critic Nancy Princenthal calls Pfaff’s penchant for “controlled chaos.”
This inaugural exhibit contains new work by Pfaff, an internationally acclaimed artist who lives and works in the Hudson Valley. While many well-known contemporary artists have studios in this area, they are not always visible. Pfaff is an exception. Despite her international reputation, she remains a strong presence in the region. In the past few years she has exhibited at the State University at New Paltz, created a set design for the opera “Regina” at Bard College’s Fisher Center for the Performing Arts, and juried the Kingston Sculpture Biennial. To have her finally showing in Albany is a real coup.

Her installations are her forte. In 1998, I saw her “Coroa de Espinhos” at the Bienal de Sao Paulo in Brazil and was blown away. Installed in a space with floor to ceiling windows, this immense sculptural installation perfectly complemented its architectural surroundings. The interplay between indoors and outdoors, organic and inorganic, and unbridled and controlled demonstrated her particular style. As an innovative artist, Pfaff has continued to explore the boundaries between two-dimensions and three. Her process is intuitive and often captures a particular emotion or sensation.

At the Massry, she presents the site-specific “Wild Rose” alongside more two-dimensional pieces ranging from large-scale collages to small drawings. Based on the Chinese calendar, most of the works are framed and some appear like shadow boxes. “Big Island,” for in-stance, is a riot of black, white and red, mixed with organic matter and fake poppies made from coffee filters. “Living with Shade” is a jumble of fall colors made from paper, foil, fishing floats and fake flowers. “There are No Camels” is an unframed ceiling-to-floor ink drawing on paper. Its flicker of pastel colors creates a nice transition to the anarchy of “Wild Rose.”

To be sure, this particular exhibition was not as powerful as some of her others. In many of her installations she integrates sculptural elements, framed works, and even the gallery walls into one seamless and dynamic visual melange. Here the sculptural installation is separate from the pieces hanging on the walls, and the walls between frames are left untouched by the artist.

This may be due to the awkwardness of the space. The window area that contains “Wild Rose” rises 27 feet, while the rest of the space is a more traditional white cube. Compared to some of her other exhibitions, this one feels more disciplined and subdued. Nonetheless, the individual work is beautiful and those who have never seen it in person will not be disappointed. Pfaff’s work is evocative and complex. It is certainly a boon to the Capital Region to have an artist of her caliber agree to initiate a fine new visual arts venue.

Nadine Wasserman of Albany is a freelance writer and curator, most recently of “Aggregate,” on exhibit until Dec. 26 at the Arts Center of the Capital Region in Troy.
Art review